Generator still running? Shore power off?

[vlamgat]

Try a set one of these. I have and they work to let you know anywhere that the rig is without 110V except to the extent of the inverter.

Only question is - do we have a single power point that is not inverter powered?

https://gfinotify.com/

[Phreak480]

Originally Posted by vlamgat

Try a set one of these. I have and they work to let you know anywhere that the rig is without 110V except to the extent of the inverter.

Only question is - do we have a single power point that is not inverter powered?

https://gfinotify.com/

Yes there are parts of the panel not inverter powered. If there isn't a free breaker then replace 1 with a double (2 slims in the housing of 1 standard) and add an outlet to feed the device.

[vlamgat]

Originally Posted by Phreak480

Yes there are parts of the panel not inverter powered. If there isn't a free breaker then replace 1 with a double (2 slims in the housing of 1 standard) and add an outlet to feed the device.

Possibly but I am not an electrician and I don't trust myself with anything Neutral. It's just a contradiction in terms. But I do suspect but have not tested the outlet in the center P/S storage area is not inverter powered.

[Desert Boat]

Originally Posted by vlamgat

Only question is - do we have a single power point that is not inverter powered?

https://gfinotify.com/

Your 28ss does - the stove outlet for the outdoor kitchen.

This looks like it need fixed WiFi to work.

[5picker]

Originally Posted by Desert Boat

Your 28ss does - the stove outlet for the outdoor kitchen.

This looks like it need fixed WiFi to work.

It does need WIFI and chances are if the power goes out, so does the WIFI and no notification.

[Desert Boat]

Originally Posted by 5picker

It does need WIFI and chances are if the power goes out, so does the WIFI and no notification.

They address that - in that case you would get a loss of power alarm.

This is a guess - they are just pinging the smartplug on a regular basis. If it loses comms, whether for wifi loss or individual circuit going dead, you get an alarm. Guess is continued - this is why they send two plugs, if they lose both, then presume the loss of power.

[msusslin]

Originally Posted by vlamgat

Try a set one of these. I have and they work to let you know anywhere that the rig is without 110V except to the extent of the inverter.

Only question is - do we have a single power point that is not inverter powered?

https://gfinotify.com/

We've been using Marcell, with great success, for the last 2 years. As we have dogs in the RV we want to know if we lose power and AC cooling if we leave our dogs in the RV. It alerts us if the inside temp goes over the set temperature. Not to mention that we have the generator set to Auto-start when we lose power.
Last year during Snow-Armageddon in Austin Texas we lost power several times and Marcell alerted us that power was off. No Wifi required, just plugged into any outlet with power.

https://www.meetmarcell.com/

[vlamgat]

Originally Posted by Desert Boat

They address that - in that case you would get a loss of power alarm.

This is a guess - they are just pinging the smartplug on a regular basis. If it loses comms, whether for wifi loss or individual circuit going dead, you get an alarm. Guess is continued - this is why they send two plugs, if they lose both, then presume the loss of power.

That's correct. Similarly when power is restored, the ping response results in a restoration message.

This is a cost effective alternative to Marcell and others that require a subscription to a sim card or e-sim that is a very low power transmitter. so if it cannot reach a tower upon power down, that's it, no message. Whereas gnotify is continuously pinging your receiver through your WiFi network and theoretically is more likely to give you a false alarm followed by a restoration message if it fails to reach the coach network. Much like a passive transponder on a car or train.

[vlamgat]

Originally Posted by Desert Boat

Your 28ss does - the stove outlet for the outdoor kitchen.

This looks like it need fixed WiFi to work.

Yes indeed, what about the outlet in the center P/S storage compartment? I have never tested mine.

[5picker]

If all they are doing is pinging the puck, how do they differentiate between loss of power and loss of WIFI/internet it is connected to?

Sent from my SM-G996U using Forest River Forums mobile app

[vlamgat]

Originally Posted by 5picker

If all they are doing is pinging the puck, how do they differentiate between loss of power and loss of WIFI/internet it is connected to?

Sent from my SM-G996U using Forest River Forums mobile app

They cannot distinguish between the 2 events. That's just one of the weaknesses of the Internet in concept and execution. 99.9% uptime is still 9 hours of down time every year and all the aggravation that goes with that. Then there are at least 2 links in this network each of which can have a 0.1% downtime and it shows why you cannot make life dependency a function of the Internet. However if the alternative is no chance of notice of power outage, this has much going for it.

After all most people only have one cell phone network because they trust that someone "can hear me now" - eventually.

[houstonstroker]

They come in a package of two. I have one in the house and one in the RV. On hot summer days I need to know immediately when there is a loss of power. This is mainly for the dog. My super C heats up pretty fast when the power goes out. We have a hotspot that stays in the RV but this will also work off campground WIFI. I believe that the unit is pinged every 6 minutes. You get a text and email during a no power situation and the same notice when power is restored.

[2005gts]

Not intending to hijack, but I am curious about auto-generator start. I don’t think my 2005GTS has such a feature.

When I bought it It was hooked up to shore power…. Cool, everything works…. Then I asked to see it all work on generator…. My presumption (and even asking) was there was an automatic transfer switch if the generator was started while still plugged into shore power..

So far so good (I thought)

On the way home we decided to avail ourselves of a Walmart parking lot for the night. So, to be able to have a comfortable Florida night, I decided to start the generator to be able to have a/c ��.

Nope, didn’t happen…. Apparently there is not a transfer switch; when the 2 are connected…. There is a SECRET, to me, breaker in the generator compartment that has to be accessed in order to run the generator…. (Uncomfortable night spent)

Looping back to the original quote, is it possible to have an automatic start in a 2005GTS?

My WatchDog should notify me if I lose shore power, I think

Bill

[AbdRahim]

Watchdog will only tell you power is out, if you open the app and look. It does not send notifications.

[Phreak480]

Originally Posted by 2005gts

Nope, didn’t happen…. Apparently there is not a transfer switch; when the 2 are connected…. There is a SECRET, to me, breaker in the generator compartment that has to be accessed in order to run the generator…. (Uncomfortable night spent)

Looping back to the original quote, is it possible to have an automatic start in a 2005GTS?

My WatchDog should notify me if I lose shore power, I think

Bill

Highly unlikely there is no transfer switch. A generator usually has a breaker on it's output to protect it from overload. If that breaker is off then it won't feed any power to the transfer switch. Rigs that are built without a transfer switch are set up so that you plug the shore cord into the generator output so basically you the operator are the transfer switch.

[2005gts]

Having slept on what I wrote….

Yes, WatchDog is a blue tooth monitoring device and not self powered so it has no way of notification

As to transferring, It seems to me that the generator was probably tripping the breaker to protect against backfeed to shore power

Bill

[Phreak480]

Originally Posted by 2005gts

Having slept on what I wrote….

Yes, WatchDog is a blue tooth monitoring device and not self powered so it has no way of notification

As to transferring, It seems to me that the generator was probably tripping the breaker to protect against backfeed to shore power

Bill

Unlikely on that being the reason the breaker tripped. If the RV was wired that way then when not on shore power your male shore power cord end would be energized with the generator running. And starting the generator while plugged in to shore power would let magic smoke out of somehting when the 2 sources weren't in sync.

[2005gts]

Ok, guess it will remain unsolved as I have never tried that combination again nor wish to experience magic smoke.

So it may have been coincidence or some other magic as I realize something must prevent backfeeding the shore power when the generator is running or viceversa.

And I understand the manual transfer method, I had access to a Rialto once upon a time

Thank y’all for your thoughts

Bill

[Phreak480]

Originally Posted by 2005gts

Ok, guess it will remain unsolved as I have never tried that combination again nor wish to experience magic smoke.

So it may have been coincidence or some other magic as I realize something must prevent backfeeding the shore power when the generator is running or viceversa.


Bill

That something would be a transfer switch.

[2005gts]

What do you reckon this looks like and where does it reside?